She checked her gauges. Eight miles until her turning onto the A7. Surely the drone would run out of power by then. If she reached the carriageway, she had a strong chance of losing her tail altogether. All she needed to do was stay ahead of that drone.

The drone zipped up behind the car and hovered. She dared not go any faster or she’d lose control and crash.

“Stay down, Sammy. Don’t lift your head, no matter what.”

“Okay.” The lad’s former bravado had gone from his voice. The bairn ducked low and didn’t make a peep.

Adrenaline surged, and Elise’s breath rasped noisily inside the cab. Last summer’s drone training at Fort Monkton had taught her all about their filming capacity. Depending on when Gilmont had launched it, she had about half an hour before the drone’s battery drained.

How long had that drone been in the air before it reached them? If it filmed which direction she turned onto the A7, she could be in real trouble, especially if Gilmont called in reinforcements. But if that drone was low on battery life, she had a fifty-fifty chance of escape. Gilmont may be brilliant and cunning, but perhaps, just perhaps, time was on her side.

Since Harry worked in a SCIF, he didn’t have access to his mobile until he left base at the end of his shift. Her call had been a long shot. All she could do was pray he received her message before too much time elapsed.

Two miles from the main road, she determined which spur she’d take to Edinburgh before she crossed the Forth estuary. After that, she had several options. The longer route wound through the mountainous narrow glens of the Trossachs.

If she selected the direct approach through Perth, her petrol would stretch longer and offer the best chance to reach the Tay Forest Park before Gilmont and his goons caught up to her. The second scenario promised the best course to outdistance her hunters.

Once she reached the Hermitage in Big Tree Country, she would ditch the 4x4 and go it on foot. Having spent her gap year there the summer before university, living in the rough while working with the forestry commission, she knew the area well. Thanks to MI6’s survival training, she had the skill sets necessary to live off the land. She simply had to reach the forest without further incident.

The trouble with her scenario sat in the cab beside her. If she detoured to drop off Sammy, Gilmont might possibly catch her. If she didn’t leave Sammy with a minister, the lad would be the worst sort of detriment in the forest.

“Are we done playing hide-and-seek yet?” Sammy asked, poking his head up.

“Not yet. This is a verra long and exciting game. It takes strategy to win against the man I’m playing against.”